Make Your Point: NEOLOGISM

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pronounce NEOLOGISM:

nee ALL uh jiz um

Hear it.

connect this word to others:

See if you can recall these linguistic terms:

1. A____isms are short, wise statements, like "Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."

2. S_l_cisms are statements that break the rules of grammar, like "I seen it" or "He knowed better than that."

3. T__t_logisms, or just t__t_logies, are statements that repeat themselves unnecessarily, like "I'll get to it when I get to it," or "It's my favorite because I like it the best."

Today we're checking out neologisms, which are newly invented words.

If you happen to love neologisms, then I hope you'll play my card game, New Word Order. It's free: you just print it out.

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

definition:

The word "neological," with Greek bits that literally mean "involving a new word," dates back to 1754 in English.

And since 1772 or so, we've used the word "neologism" to mean "a newly created word."

Yes, all words were made up. But a neologism was made up relatively recently.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Noun, the countable kind: "'Frenemy' is a fun neologism;" "The Washington Post holds regular contests for inventing neologisms;" "His invention of the most graceless neologism I've seen in years—'disconfirm' (The Times)."

Other forms:

The plural noun is "neologisms."

For an adjective, you can pick between "neologic" and "neological."

The idea or practice of creating new words is "neology." And people who create new words are "neologists."

Lastly, to create a new word is to "neologize," with the other forms being "neologized," "neologizing," and "neologization."

how to use it:

Pick the fun, clear, semi-common, academic-sounding word "neologism" to label a newly created word or phrase.

It's a time-referenced term. That is, you can use it to label a term that's new right now, like "deepfake" and "side hustle," or a term that was new at the time, like Shakespeare's neologism "barefaced" or the 1990s neologism "uptalk" (that thing? where you lift your voice up? even when you're not asking a question?).

So, have fun with neologisms! Talk about people creating them, using them, or laughing at them.

examples:

"In the very first episode of 'The Colbert Report,' Stephen Colbert made a lasting impact on the American lexicon, by introducing for the first time the neologism 'truthiness...' Colbert immediately lampooned Americans' willingness to trust gut feelings and ignore facts."
— Sarah Gray, Salon, 18 December 2014

"Have you ever attempted to answer the TV remote instead of your cell phone? I call that blunder a 'Droidian slip,' but you won't find the expression in the dictionary — yet. You'll find it in my book, 'Wordbirds,' which holds 200 neologisms I've minted to describe the unnamed phenomena of our evolving millennium."
— Liesl Schillinger, New York Times, 24 March 2014

has this page helped you understand "neologism"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "neologism" without saying "invented term" or "recent coinage."

try it out:

Dictionary.com recently welcomed these neologisms:
air hug,
antiwork,
microtransaction,
rage farming,
trauma dumping,
climate fiction,
golden handcuffs,
and bottle episode.

If you had to bet, which neologism on that list do you think will still be popular fifty years from now? Why?

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for May is "The Rock & Roll Hall of Game."

It's inspired by a Jeopardy! category called Foodstock.

I'll give you a clue, and you'll try to come up with the tweaked name of a group or solo artist from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

For example, if I give you "They're an American boy band fond of surfing, California, rich vocal harmonies, and helping the Mario Brothers rescue the princess," then you give me "The Peach Boys" (a playful blend of "The Beach Boys" and "Princess Peach" from the Mario games).

Try this one today: These hip-hop artists from the Bronx sent a powerful Message; helped pioneer breakbeats, turntablism, and speaking out lyrically for social justice; and remain the reigning champs of road rage in Need for Speed, Mario Kart, and Bang Bang Racing.

To see the answer, scroll all the way down!

review this word:

1. A near opposite of a neologism is

A. an ancient or timeworn term.
B. a euphemism (a polite but unclear term).
C. a misnomer (an incorrect or misleading term).

2. Shakespearean neologisms include _____.

A. "dauntless," "swagger," and "lackluster"
B. the plays The Tempest and Much Ado About Nothing
C. ruthless ambition, hiding behind curtains, and giving away the ending at the beginning

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.

From my blog:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.

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